Here we reprint the Irish Family Planning Association's 13 point policy on abortion adopted by the association.
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Women, faced with unwanted or problematic pregnancies, should be assisted by way of non-directive pregnancy counselling and the provision of services or treatment, within the State.
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Article 40.3.3, equating the life of the unborn with the life of the pregnant woman, should be removed in full. Safe and legal abortion services should be introduced.
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It is for the woman to decide, in consultation with her chosen medical advisors, whether or not to continue with her pregnancy.
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As an immediate and interim measure, legislation should be introduced to give effect to the X case, where the Supreme Court found that termination is permissable if it is established that there is a real and substantial risk to the life of the mother.
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The standard required for a determination of the risk of suicide should be consistentand uniform for pregnant women as for the rest of the population.
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The Regulation of Information Act 1995 should be amended to allow the service providers to give appropriate information in a manner best suited to the needs of the client. The legislation is outmoded, as the impact of the internet has made it possible to bypass pregnancy information and counselling services. Pregnancy advice and counselling services which do not provide the contact details of abortion service providers are not restricted in any way.
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Statutory regulation for all pregnancy advice and counselling services should be brought forward prescribing minimum codes of practice and standards, to ensure that they do not impart misleading and incorrect advice.
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Abortion is not an appropriate method of family planning. It should be viewed, therefore, as a solution to a 'crisis'(an unwanted or problematic pregnancy) rather than as a means of regulating one's fertility, in accordance with the statement agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development.
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As the law stands minors or those in care or control of the State do not have the right to travel abroad on the same basis as other citizens. This is due to the restrictions created by the C case on the courts authorising travel abroad for a termination for these groups. Minors and those in the care or control of the State should have the right to travel abroad on the same basis as other citizens.
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The near total ban on abortion, such as that which exists in Ireland, does not prevent women from seeking abortions. It has a discriminatory effect on those women who face particular barriers in accessing services abroad(women living in poverty, young women, migrant and asylum seeking women, and those in the care or control of the State). This results in increased delay, expense, unnecessary hardship and stigma.
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Abortion is a health issue which should be regulated by health guidelines and not by way of criminal statutes or constitutional provisions, except where such provisions exist explicitly to protect women's health.
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In no circumstances is it appropriate to criminalise women who terminate or attempt to terminate their own pregnancies. This is currently a criminal offence under Irish law and carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
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Reproductive rights are human rights. Ireland's ban on abortion is in contravention of its commitments under the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights, and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Convention of Human Rights.
Read about the Anti-Choice and Anti-women 'bogus agencies' related to point 6 at www.ifpa.ie The IFPA has been working on the issue of rogue pregnancy counselling agencies for some time.
